Bio

Professional Biography

David Wells Roth is an American fine artist who paints in the representational style.

New York City

After earning a BFA in painting at Boston University, he lived in and explored New York City for several years and painted cityscapes of its neighborhoods and people. He met a French family there who invited him to barter one of his paintings for a four-month stay in Fontaine de Vaucluse near Avignon, a region in southern France in southern France. Later another family member offered to trade an apartment for his paintings in a small suburb of Paris, an arrangement which lasted for the next 15 years.

France

During that time he painted European life and landscapes throughout France and Italy exhibiting his paintings in numerous group and solo exhibitions in Paris and Boston, including shows at the Grand Palais in Paris and the French Library in Boston (now the French Culture Center).

At the only painting exhibit in the landmark Parisian tea salon, ‘Angelina’s’, his painting of the historic salon's interior was placed on the cover of their menu for the following five years.

The American Revolutionary War

In the mid 1990’s, while still living in Paris, he was commissioned by America’s oldest restaurant and Boston landmark, the historic Union Oyster House, to create a series of paintings now hanging in their Heritage Room. These paintings depict the life of Revolutionary War printer and publisher Isaiah Thomas and chronicle his involvement in the dawn of the American Revolution.

Included as well are portraits of statesman Daniel Webster.

Federal Court Judges

Upon returning to the United States, Roth was commissioned by the United States federal court to paint the official portrait of Boston federal judge, Hon. Richard G. Stearns. Following that work, he was awarded a historic, ongoing commission to paint all the judicial portraits, past and present, of the United States federal court judges of the district of Puerto Rico, totaling 39 portraits to date. These paintings hang in the main atrium hall of the federal court building located in the Hato Rey district of San Juan.

The artist now resides in the Boston area and continues to create striking city scenes, portraits, landscapes and seascapes of New England. His paintings of his travels can be found in public, private and museum collections throughout Europe and the United States.

Artist’s Statement

St. Botolph Club, senior member

Painting for me is a lifelong effort to resolve form and content that reflects how I feel about the world around me.

I was born in Florida and grew up there for 10 years, yards away from the Gulf Coast of Fort Walton Beach. Then we moved north to Massachusetts. My parents were from The Bronx and moved to Florida for my dad’s work as a radar design engineer. Prior to moving to Florida, my mother studied painting at Hunter College under the abstract expressionist Robert Motherwell. She continued to paint, painting views of the coast near our house. I was 4-5 years old when I became interested in painting, having watched her create her paintings of the Gulf. Growing up at the dawn of the space industry and with my father’s interest in astronomy, physics and science influencing me, I profoundly appreciated and was inspired by the beauty and depth of space. I drew and painted numerous space-oriented scenes as a child. The contrast of light and dark, the infinite vastness of the newly seen views of space drew me in and found its way into my nocturnes.

Throughout the years, we often visited my grandparents who were still living in The Bronx and later, Brooklyn. We spent a lot of time in the city visiting science and art museums and exploring the streets and neighborhoods of New York. This opened my mind to painting cities. My interest in painting urban life was further enhanced after college when I moved to New York City for a couple of years. While living for a few months in my car and various storage spaces and attics, I painted in and around New York. While there, through a friend of my father, I met a French family and was invited to stay with them in the south of France for a few months as a barter with one of my paintings. After that, I moved to a suburb of Paris and stayed there for the next 15 years, again bartering for my apartment with my paintings. I traveled throughout France and Italy, continuing my exploration of cities and European life in my work, as well as painting landscapes, and life in the French cafés. What most interested me about cities are that they are the result of its people and reflect their interaction or isolation. I am intrigued by these aspects and still love exploring and communicating these dynamics through my paintings.

Not long after returning to the United States, I was commissioned, now ongoing, to paint the entire judicial portrait history of the United States Federal Court of the District of Puerto Rico, 39 portraits completed to date.

Over the years, I have found that it is not necessarily the subject matter, such as the objects in a still life, a building, a tree, or a boat, that is the focus of my painting. It is more the play of light and its interaction with the subject as expressed through the paint and its application, thereof.

Professional Artist CV

Painter | Selected exhibitions, collections, commissions & publications

Education

Boston University, BFA, Painting.
Studied under: John Wilson, Arthur Polonsky, David Ratner, David Aronson, Iso Papo, Morton Sacks, Joseph Ablow
Rhode Island School of Design, Pre-college studies program.
Studied design under: Richard Merkin and architecture under author, David Macaulay

Awards & Recognition

2007–Present Judicial portrait commission, United States District Court for the District of Puerto Rico; 39 portraits completed to date
2012-15 St. Botolph Club, Boston - Fellowship, Fellow
2006 Blanche E. Coleman Award Competition, finalist
1993 Third Prize, Les Trophées de la Couleur, Lefranc & Bourgeois / Winsor & Newton, France — third place among approximately 16,000 entries; Opera Light and Color subsequently acquired for the corporate collection.
1975-76 Ford Foundation, Educational Grant, Boston University, Boston, MA
1975 Gold Medal, M. Grumbacher Artist’s Material Award, New York National Scholastic Awards, New York, NY
1974-75 Boston Globe Scholastics Art Competition, various awards

Selected Solo Exhibitions

2025 St. Botolph Club, Conservatory Gallery, Boston, MA
2023 St. Botolph Club, Conservatory Gallery, Boston, MA
2019 Cotilla Gallery, Nova Southeastern University, FL
2015 South Street Gallery, Hingham, MA
2012 St. Botolph Club, Boston, MA
2010 Julie Heller Gallery, Provincetown, MA
2010 Whistler House Museum of Art, Lowell, MA
2007 Boston Society of Architects / AIA, Boston, MA — Metropolis: Urban Scenes From 1980–2007; solo exhibition of 31 oil paintings depicting Boston and New York.
1994 American School of Paris, Paris, France
1990 W.I.C.E. (Woman’s Institute of Continuing Education) Paris, France
1989 Kennedy Studios, Boston, MA
1988 Angelina’s (tea salon) Paris, France
1988 Jewish Community Center, Revere, MA
1988 White Cliff Estate, Plymouth, MA
1987 Galerie Chaillot, Paris, France
1987,88,89 French Library of Boston, Boston, MA
1986 The Copley Society of Boston, Boston, MA
1985 Marriott Hotel, Boston, MA
1985,86,87 Sky Club, Boston, MA
1983 La Loir Dans La Theier (tea salon), Paris, France

Selected Group Exhibitions

2024–present Salmagundi Club, New York, Artist Member with Juried and Group Exhibitions
2024–present Copley Society of Boston, Artist Member with Juried and Group Exhibitions
2019 The Guild of Boston Artists: New England Regional Juried Exhibition, Boston, MA
2019 Amazing Things Arts Center, Framingham, MA
2018 Providence Arts Club, Providence, RI
2018 Powers Gallery, "A Time and a Place", Acton, MA
2017 Kelpi Gallery, South Thomaston, ME
2016 Powers Gallery, "Town & Country", Acton, MA
2016 Kelpi Gallery, South Thomaston, ME
2015 St. Botolph Club, Fellowship Exhibition
2014 Boston University, Convergence: 60th Anniversary Alumni Juried Exhibition
2014 North Hill Gallery, Needham, MA
2013 St. Botolph Club, Fellowship Exhibition
2013 Powers Gallery, Acton, MA
2012 Claudia Stone Gallery, New York, NY
2012 Quidley & Company Fine Art, Boston, MA
2012 George Billis Gallery, New York, NY
2010 Brickbottom Gallery, Somerville, MA
2008 Mazmanian Art Gallery, Framingham State College, Framingham, MA
2008 Allan Stone Gallery – Talent 2008, New York, NY
2008 Danforth Museum, Framingham, MA, Juried Exhibition, Curated by Carole Anne Meehan, Curator at the Institute of Contemporary Art, Boston
2007 Allan Stone Gallery – Talent 2007, New York, NY
2007 Powers Gallery, Acton, MA
2006 Logan International Airport, Terminal C, Boston, MA — United South End Artists exhibition; included Snow in Brighton and other Boston cityscapes (year per contemporaneous press bibliography).
2006 Boston University Art Gallery, Boston, MA
2006 Frances Roddy Competition - Concord Art Association, Concord, MA, Juried Show, Jurer: Howard Yezerski
2005 – Present The Julie Heller Gallery, Provincetown, MA
2005 South End Open Studio, Boston, MA
2005 Redbrick Studio, Beverly, MA
1994 Espace BROTHER, Paris, France
1993 Cirque d'Hiver, Les Trophées de la Couleur (LEFRANC & BOURGEOIS, WINSOR & NEWTON), Paris,

France

1992 Grande Palais (Salon d'Automne), Paris, France
1990 Pre St. Gervais, France - Salon d'Expression Contemporain, Le Pre St. Gervais, France
1982 10th district city hall (Juried salon exhibition) Paris, France
1980 Copley Society of Boston's "Boston Jubilee 350", Boston, MA
1975-79 Boston University Art Gallery, Boston, MA
1975 New York National Scholastic Awards, Union Carbide Building, New York, NY
1974,75 Massachusetts Regional Scholastic Art Exhibition (sponsored by the Boston Globe) Boston, MA

Selected Collections

Museum

Fort Wayne Museum of Art (FWOMA), Fort Wayne, Indiana - Oil on canvas: Lobster Boat with Sail Tufts University Art Gallery Aidekman Arts Center, Medford, MA - Watercolor: Reclining Man

Public

Mairie du Pré-Saint-Gervais, Pré-Saint-Gervais, France - Oil on canvas: Rue Danton, Le Pre St. Gervais
Boston Public Library, Watercolors, graphite and charcoal drawing on paper, Prints & Drawings Collection, Boston, MA
United States of America, John Joseph Moakley Federal Court House, Boston, MA - Portrait of Hon. Richard G. Stearns
United States of America, Clemente Ruiz Nazario Federal Court House, San Juan, Puerto Rico Commissioned to paint the judicial portrait series (39 portraits completed to date) of the U.S. District Court in Puerto Rico, past and present including portraits of: Hon. Clemente Ruíz Nazario, Hon. José Antonio Fusté, Hon. Aida M. Delgado-Colon, Hon. Francisco Augusto Besosa, Hon. Gustavo A. Gelpi, Hon. Carmen Consuelo
Cerezo, Hon. Pedro Delgado, Hon. Juan R. Torruella, Hon. Jaime Pieras Jr., Hon. Salvador E. Casellas, Hon.
Raymond L. Acosta , Hon. Hiram Rafael Cancio , Hon. Juan B. Fernández-Badillo, Hon. Paul Charlton, Hon.
David Chávez Jr. , Hon. Robert Archer Cooper, Hon. Daniel R. Dominguez, Hon. Jay A. Garcia- Gregory, Hon.
Gilberto Gierbolini-Ortíz, Hon. Peter Joseph Hamilton, Hon. William Henry Holt, Hon. John James Jenkins, Hon. Héctor M. Laffitte, Hon. Charles Francis McKenna, Hon. Arthur Fuller Odlin, Hon. Juan Manuel Pérez- Giménez, Hon. Hernán G. Pesquera, Hon. Noah Brooks Kent Pettingill, Hon. Thomas Hagan Roberts, Hon.
Bernard Shandon Rodey, Hon. José V. Toledo, Hon. Ira Kent Wells, Major Eugene D. Dimmick, Major Earl D.
Thomas
Wrentham District Court, Wrentham, MA, - Portrait of Hon. Warren Powers

Corporate

Lefranc & Bourgeois / Winsor & Newton, France — Opera Light and Color; acquired for the corporate collection through a purchase by the company president following the 1993 Les Trophées de la Couleur competition.

Private

Found in private collections throughout Europe, Asia, and the United States

Selected Commissions

CORPORATE

MIT Federal Credit Union, Cambridge MA – 2013 - commissioned portrait of its founder, Frank Conant Union Oyster House (historical landmark), Boston, MA - 1995-1997 - painting series commission: to create a series of paintings representing the printer / publisher Isaiah Thomas and his connection to the American Revolutionary War as well as depicting history connected to the Union Oyster House
City Harvest, Inc., New York, NY
Angelina's Tea Salon, Historic Tea Room, Paris, France, Painting "Le Rendezvous" used on their menu cover from 1990-1995
Law Offices of Kenyon & Kenyon, Commissioned a painting depicting their building used for their holiday card, New York, NY, 1990
Morgan Stanley, New York, NY
Psion Co., London, England Les Nouveaux Constructeurs, Paris, France - 1992 - lithograph commission: to create a lithograph edition representing the Cathedral d'Evry, the first cathedral built in France in 200 years, the lithographs were offered to the various parties involved by Les Nouveaux Constructeurs, including the architect, Mario Botta Hotel Adagio, Sevres, France. A mural commissioned by Les Nouveaux Constructeurs, Paris, France - 1992 -depicting Paris in the 19th century.
Hotel Ibis, France
One if by land, Two if by sea, New York, NY, painting depicting their building set in the 1700's

Selected Publications, Reviews & Press

Interview by Adrienne Garnett, "IN THE THRALL OF SPACE; THE BLAZE OF LIGHT", Art of the Times Magazine (PDF), October, 2018
Interview by Cynthia K. Buccini, Gallery, Bostonia Magazine, Boston University, Summer 2017 Interview by Michael Corbin, DAVID WELLS ROTH: JUDICIAL PORTRAITS with "ArtBook Guy" July 1, 2013 Interview by Michael Corbin, "DAVID WELLS ROTH: SPACE, LIGHT & SHADOW" with "ArtBookGuy.com", April 5, 2012
Framingham artist exhibits at Boston's St. Botolph Club
Review by Chris Bergeran, Gatehouse News Services, (or Article). February 27, 2012 Listed in the Bénézit Dictionary of Artists, Vol. 11, pg. 1434, Oxford University Press Review by Kristine Lundblad, Gatehouse News Services, Framingham artist mounts 'Places and Faces' show at the Whistler (or Article), June 3, 2010
Interview by Chris Bergeran, Metrowest Daily News, Framingham artist completes series of judge portraits (or Article), March 22, 2010
Drawing appears in Nathan Goldstein’s Figure Drawing, the Structure, Anatomy and Expressive Design of Human Form, 7th Edition, Pearson Prentice Hall, 2010
Review by Chris Bergeran, Metrowest Daily News, "Trio of artists exhibits at Framingham State", December 8, 2008
John Hilliard, “David Wells Roth’s Paintings Capture the Silent Drama of Color at Play,” September 19, 2008 (coverage of Allan Stone Gallery, Talent 2008).
Melissa Correa Velázquez, “Develan óleos de primeros jueces federales en la Isla,” El Vocero de Puerto Rico, July 11, 2008.
Xavira Neggers Crescioni, “Portraits of Ex-Federal Judges Unveiled in Courthouse Tribute,” The San Juan Star, July 11, 2008.
Metrowest Daily News, “Anticipation: Artists and institutions to watch in 2007”, December 31, 2006 “Scenes and the City,” The Boston Globe, Sidekick, March 2007 — coverage of Metropolis: Urban Scenes From
1980–2007 at the Boston Society of Architects.
Review by Ron Fletcher, The Boston Globe, “Walls of Logan’s Terminal C provide a way station for art” - - “Walls of Logan’s Terminal C provide a way station for art” July, 2006
Chris Bergeron, “A Brush with the Law: Framingham Artist Paints Portrait of U.S. District Judge Richard
Stearns,” The Daily News, May 28, 2006, pp. C1–C2.
Interview by Chris Bergeran, Metrowest Daily News, “A brush with passion”, September 15, 2005 News From the Boston University School for the Arts, Class notes, 1997
Susan Bickelhaupt and Maureen Dezell, The Boston Globe, Names and Faces, “Finishing Touches”, July 10,
1996
Figaroscope, Paris, Expositions, “David Wells Roth”, October 26, 1988
Robert Taylor, The Boston Globe, “Great Views”, June 12, 1987
Louis F. Williams, “Sudbury Artist a ‘Master-in-the-Making’,” June 27, 1985 (newspaper clipping; publication attribution to be verified).
Interview by Donald Heinrich, Something ELSe, “A foreign Palette - Two artists in Paris”, December 20, 1984
Review, The Middlesex News, “Sudbury artist exhibits in honor of Boston 350” July 1, 1980
The Boston Sunday Globe, "Scholastic art awards of The Boston Globe", February 9, 1975
Interview by Lorelei Snyder, The Fence Viewer (Sudbury, MA), "Washington Stamp Board Will View Sudbury Student's Art", 1970